Netflix releases “deeply sad” ITV true crime drama starring Martin Freeman

Netflix has quietly added a five-year-old ITV drama series that several fans have described as “outstanding”.

In the 2019 six-part series A Confession, Sherlock actor Martin Freeman plays the role of real-life Detective Superintendent Steve Fulker, who was dismissed from the police force after investigating the disappearance of Sian O’Callaghan and breaching police protocol.

In 2011, the 22-year-old was last seen in the early hours of March 19 at a nightclub in the Wiltshire town of Swindon.

Her body was found a few days later and 48-year-old taxi driver Christopher Halliwell pleaded guilty to murder the following year.

He is currently serving a life sentence after also admitting to killing another young woman – Becky Godden – eight years earlier.

The ITV drama follows the investigation into the disappearances and murders of the two women and how their killer almost avoided a prison sentence.

After officers arrested Halliwell, Det Supt Fulcher said he wanted to speak to Halliwell “man to man” rather than read him his rights, get him a lawyer and take him to a police station.

The detective and suspect met at Barbury Castle, an Iron Age hill fort near Swindon, where Fulcher believed Halliwell could keep Sian alive.

Fulcher believed there was an imminent threat to life and wanted to use emergency powers. The suspect admitted murdering Sian before sending police to her body.

After this confession, he admitted that he had killed before and led the police to the place where he had buried Becky.

However, because Fulcher had not warned Halliwell as he should have done under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act, the criminal case was put in jeopardy and the detective had to face a gross misconduct hearing.

The series about what transpired was recently released on Netflix, and viewers urged others to tune in.

“I watched ITV’s A Confession on Netflix yesterday.” So so good. “You did a really good job focusing on the victims,” user brendaukxo wrote on X.

“Martin Freeman’s series A Confession is here on Netflix. I will watch the British crime shows so much,” kikibats shared.

“A Confession on Netflix is ​​a great watch based on a true story,” AngeM1888 added.

Since its initial release, many other viewers have praised the series.

‘Terrific. “I didn’t want it to end,” Linda C wrote on Rotten Tomatoes.

“Well written and you really couldn’t imagine the ending. Freeman plays the not-quite-right protagonist well and the film is captivating until the end,” another commented.

“One of the best shows I’ve seen in a long time, up there with Broadchurch and Line of Duty.” An interesting true story and great acting. “It also gives a lot of heart and thought to the victims at the center, which not all crime shows do,” wrote another.

On the afternoon that Haliwell Fulcher made the two murder confessions, he was supposed to have read the suspect his rights under the PACE rules three times, which he knowingly failed to do.

This meant that his confession to murdering Becky was not admissible in court and the charges were dropped.

It wasn’t until 2016, when new evidence was discovered, that he was convicted of Becky’s murder.

After his conviction, police said there was a “distinct possibility” that Halliwell was a serial killer because there were eight years between the murders.

Despite being found guilty of gross misconduct following an investigation by police watchdog IPCC, Fulcher was allowed to keep his job but later resigned after his career was in tatters.

However, he always defended his actions. In 2018, he appeared on the ITV show To Catch a Serial Killer alongside Trevor McDonald.

“In my view, I have returned two daughters to their mothers and prevented further casualties resulting from Halliwell continuing his career as a serial killer,” Fulcher told McDonald.

“Without what I did, Becky would still be in this field, Sian would never be found and Christopher Halliwell would be walking the streets.”

A Confession also stars Imelda Staunton as Karen Edwards, Becky’s mother, and Siobhan Finneran as Elaine Pickford, Sian’s mother. Joe Absolom plays Halliwell.

A Confession is streaming on ITVX and Netflix.

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